4 May 2010 / REUTERS, LONDON
Opinion polls on Monday indicated Britain remained on course for a parliament with no outright majority, raising the rare prospect of a minority or coalition government after Thursday’s election.
David Cameron, the leader of the center-right Conservatives, had claimed to have the momentum after a strong performance in last week’s leaders’ television debate. However, surveys on Monday indicated his party’s lead had been pegged back to 5 percentage points -- as much as half their weekend advantage -- and suggested either the Conservatives or Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s Labour Party could still win. The quirks of Britain’s electoral system, where seats are allocated purely by constituency results, and not in proportion to the overall share of the vote, mean that Labour could come third in the popular vote but still remain the largest bloc. The race has been blown wide open by a strong showing from the Liberal Democrats, traditionally Britain’s third party, whose own telegenic leader, Nick Clegg, has challenged Cameron’s claim to be the candidate of change. If the polls were replicated nationwide on Thursday, it would result in a “hung parliament” where no single party has an overall majority, a result last seen in Britain in 1974. What happens after that is a matter of huge speculation. The uncertainty could unsettle markets who want swift action to tackle a budget deficit running at over 11 percent of GDP, although the currency and foreign exchange markets have so far taken the growing prospect of a hung parliament in their stride.
